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What could go wrong? Viktor’s question echoed through Tatiana’s mind long after she assigned Felix and Nika to accompany Gustaw out to the tunnels to recover the Enigma machine. The Guard could go wrong, she thought, recalling how easily they’d followed the Fargos, breaking into their hotel and putting the couple in danger.
They were everywhere.
This last thought worried her the most, and she called Felix. “Just checking to see how you’re both doing,” she said when he answered.
“We’re fine. The map to his cabin is straightforward. Gustaw said he’d meet us where the pavement ends.”
“Do me a favor. Wait for me. I want to go with you.”
“Are you sure? It’s nothing we can’t handle.”
“We shouldn?
?t underestimate the Guard. You know what happened in Kaliningrad. They’re even more prevalent where you are. Why take chances?”
“No argument there,” Felix said. “We’ll see you in a while.”
—
TATIANA QUIETLY OBSERVED Nika on the ride up to Gustaw’s property. Other than the dark circles under her blue eyes, she seemed fine, and Tatiana hoped that the young woman had merely been suffering from a mild case of post-traumatic stress brought on by Viktor’s shooting.
At Gustaw’s cabin, the three got out of the car. As Felix walked up to greet the miner, Tatiana turned to Nika. “How are you?”
“Fine,” Nika said. “Why?”
“A lot has happened. You’ve seemed . . . upset.”
Nika glanced toward Felix, then back. “I’d think you’d be more upset. You were the one kidnapped, after all.”
Tatiana studied her a moment. Same brusqueness Nika usually showed. Still . . .
“Thought there were only two of you,” Gustaw remarked.
“My apologies,” Tatiana said. “I decided to come at the last minute.”
“And you are . . . ?”
“Tatiana Petrov. We spoke on the phone.”
Gustaw nodded.
“With the threat of the Guard, I thought it a good idea to bring more help.”
“Lucky for us, I haven’t seen any signs they’re back in any large numbers. Let’s hope it stays that way.” He had two packs on the porch, handing one to Felix, then shouldering the other himself. “The sooner we get started, the sooner we can get the photos to the Fargos.”
The four hiked through the woods until they reached the entrance to the tunnel. A half hour later, he was leading them into the hidden cavern where they had found the Enigma machine. “There it is,” he said, pointing.
Tatiana drew her gaze from the mummified Nazi on her right to the smashed box on the floor near the desk. Just as Sam Fargo had described, someone had tried to destroy the machine. “I’ll get the photos,” she said, pulling the camera from her pocket. She took pictures from every angle, some with the flash, some without, paying particular attention to the plugs and wiring.
Felix picked up the rotors on the floor beside the machine, placing them on the desk. As she took photos of the rotors, Nika crouched beside the Enigma, her back to them. Tatiana glanced over, noticing Nika holding her phone over the machine. “What are you doing?” Tatiana asked.
“Good idea to have backup, don’t you think?”
“Definitely.” Tatiana took one last look around. “This should do it. Unless there’s something else we need here?”
Gustaw suggested they take the machine and rotors with them just in case, and once they gathered the pieces and placed it into his pack, they headed back to the entrance, where Gustaw climbed out first in order to pull them up with the harness system he’d rigged. As he assisted Tatiana, she’d convinced herself that her worry for Nika was more in her mind than anything else—until she glanced down into the tunnel and saw Nika holding her phone, the screen lighting up.
Waiting until everyone was out, she turned to Nika, saying, “What were you doing on your phone?”